Braun Essays

Braun Essays Braun Essay Braun Essay HBS Case Analysis: Braun: The Syncro Shaver Dr. Cunningham ICM Braden Bellack EID: byb75 ! ! â€Å"When you see the moon, you can’t fly directly to it because it moves. You have to aim ahead of it in order to reach it†- Peter Schneider, head of Design at Braun. History Gillette’s 1967 purchase of Braun democratized the Braun brand and made it accessible to markets in the U. S. , Europe, and Japan. Braun made sure that it held on to its â€Å"German Soul† which was known for cutting-edge engineering and design. The dual branded Braun Oral-B Plaque Remover, launched in the early1990’s caused the Braun brand to be visible in the worldwide market for the first time. The innovative development of Braun’s Flex Integral shaver created large market share increases due to its faster, closer shave. The washable shaver category is introduced by National (Panasonic) in 1995 causing Braun to lose market share. Since 1995, Braun shavers have been steadily losing market share in its three major markets, Europe, Japan, and the U. S. Situation Analysis External Analysis Market Analysis In 1996, the electric shaving (also called dry shaving) market was worth $2 billion and consisted of more than 37 million units. The market slumped to $1. 8 billion in 1998 and saw a one million unit drop as well. The U. S. and Europe account for half of the dry shaving market with Japan accounting for another quarter. The power shaving market is defined by new innovations taking away market share from old er products. This is seen by Phillips Norelco’s rotary shavers and then Panasonic’s washable shavers taking market share from Braun’s Flex Integral. New products in the dry shaving market, historically, have to be innovative, different, and better in order to be successful. To remain competitive in the dry shaving market a company must take market share away from the competition rather than maintain market share because of the constant innovation and the fact that the market has not risen since 1996. Wet shaving is actually more expensive on a per-shave basis. Foil vs. Rotary shavers Foil shavers tend to give the user a closer shave and have been around longer so consumers are more familiar with them. The vibration involved because of how the foil shave works causes an unpleasant â€Å"itchy† sensation in the hand of the user. ! Rotary shavers offer a more comfortable shave, but don’t give a close shave and take longer. However, rotary shavers don’t vibrate, so there is no uncomfortable feeling in the hand. Rotary shavers then generally win the battle over comfort while foil shavers win in closeness, and the newer foil shavers are quicker so they have an edge in the convenience category as well. Wet Shaving The electric razor can not equal a traditional wet shave in closeness, and most consumers who choose dry shaving over wet shaving do so to avoid the time and process of shaving with shaving cream and water every morning. Electric razors offered the benefit of being able to shave on the go (like in your car). Still however, wet shaving was the preferred method of daily hair removal for the majority of men. Competition Figure 1 !#$%'()*+),$-. /,0$12. ,$3$,(,40+4$. 51$678. (9,:$ ()*+,! #$! -. /00/12! 345)60758! 96:/,;